That’s what I am, don’t you know?
Poor By Choice.
According to my father.
Poor By Choice.
It’s a thing.
Want to join?
How quaint it is, he thinks, to not have enough money to make ends meet. How utterly charming it is to work and work and work and to not buy what you need when you need it because you just cannot afford it. It is just pat-you-on-the-head adorable to lose a big contract and not know when or if another one is coming along. It is all a rebellion, you see. A rebellion against America, against capitalism, against my parents, it is anti-globalist even, my conscious decision to be poor.
I have explained, blue-in-the-face explained, to my father that there is poor and there is poor. By Polish standards, I am normal as in SNAFU-normal, but still with my head above water -well, actually slightly below water but I’m not down for the count yet. By American (my father’s) standards, we are poor but by global standards we are lucky. We are not poor as in live-in-a-cardboard-shack poor but that doesn’t help me when all I want to do is…oh, never mind, it’s really not that important. Four tickets to the US cost about 12,000+ PLN. Bleh.
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Lois B
February 14, 2012 at 6:02 amI think as parents, we often forget how much our words matter to our children – that what we say and forget, is etched in their brain. 🙁
Chris
February 14, 2012 at 1:12 pmSo true.I try to remember it myself as a parent.
Kasia
February 15, 2012 at 4:03 amNot that Americans are really rich. So many people have credit card debt, and they just keep charging. That said – some of my Polish relatives think that i am rich because I live in America:) You know – rich like the people in the movies:)Don't get me started on the plane ticket prices – every time I check they seem to be more expensive, not to mention the ridiculous connections.
Kasia
February 15, 2012 at 4:04 amAmericans in the US – I am sure you knew what I was trying to say.
Chris
February 15, 2012 at 7:59 amKasia – I got it 😉 I especially like plot lines in Polish soaps or movies where somebody goes to America for 6 months or a year and comes back a millionaire. It perpetuates the stereotype. Over here I am quick to remind folks that I earn in zloty 😉
Anonymous
February 29, 2012 at 2:53 amWith this post you truly won me over! Kudos!